Fluid treating apparatus for strands



W Mm q .Q x l, ay Q \Q Q Q RF \flq I II! V Dec. 29, 1953 P. D. EMERSONFLUID TREATING APPARATUS FOR STRANDS Filed Feb. 15, 1951 INVENTOR. PAUL0. EMERSON BY ,,%M f

ATTQRNEY.

Patented Dec. 29, 1953 FLUID TREATING APPARATUS FOR STRANDS Paul D.Emerson, Media, Pa., assignor, by mesne assignments, to The ChemstrandCorporation, Philadelphia, Pa., a corporation of Delaware ApplicationFebruary 15, 1951 Serial No. 211,014

Claims. 1

This invention relates to an improved apparatus for the treatment ofstrands and like materials. 'More particularly, the invention relates toa new and improved apparatus for treating natural, synthetic, orartificial yarns and monofilaments with fluid media in liquid or vaporcondition in a substantially closed chamber during their travel from onepoint to another.

Strand, as used throughout this specification and the appended claims,is intended to include all types of strands, threads, yarns, filaments,fibers, fibrous bundles, bundles of filaments or filamentary material,ribbons, bands, extruded wire, rods, and the like, etc.

The present invention is especially applicable to the treatment of yarnsmade from various types of materials, such as cotton, wool, flax, hemp,etc., regenerated cellulose, such as that produced from viscose,cuprammonium cellulose, and the like, cellulose ethers and esters, suchas methyl cellulose, hydroxyethyl cellulose, ethyl cellulose, etc.,cellulose nitrate, cellulose acetate, cellulose propionate, cellulosebutyrate, mixed cellulose ethers and esters, vinyl resins, such aspolyacrylonitrile, copolymers of acrylonitrile, polyethylene, polyvinylchloride, copolymers of vinyl chloride with vinyl acetate oracrylonitrile, after-chlorinated vinyl polymers and copolymers,vinylidene polymers, such as polyvinylidene chloride, etc., andcondensation polymers, such as polyamides and polyesters, and the like,etc.

The known apparatus for the treatment of strands with fluids in liquidor vapor condition during their travel from one point to anothercomprise a substantially closed chamber,. into. which the strands passthrough orifices which have dimensions only slightly greater than thoseof the cross-sections of the strands in order to reduce loss oftreatment fluid as far as possible. For example, it is customary totreat synthetic or artificial strands with steam for the purpose ofaltering their properties, such as by stretching the strands in anatmosphere of'steamunder pressure or by permitting the strands to shrinkduring the steam treatment.

However, threading of such apparatus presents quite a problem because itis necessary, each time that a fresh batch of materials or strands is tobe treated, to open up the apparatus sufficiently to make it possible topass the materials through the orifices by hand. This involves loss oftreatment fluid and also loss oi heat when the operation is onecarriedout at a superatmospheric temperature, particularly if it is necessaryto allow the apparatus to cool before 2 it can be handled. Moreover, ittakes up the time of the operators and involves an extra overhead chargeon account of loss of output while the apparatus is standing idle.

"To overcome these disadvantages, it has been an adverse effect on thestrands being treated. That is, there is a pressure drop across theorifices or openings and treating fluid, such as steam, escapingtherethrough exerts a frictional efiect on the strands passing throughthe orifices, which sets up an irregular and uncontrolled tension in thestrands in addition to the tension exerted by any mechanical stretchingdevices. Therefore, it is desirable to keep the size of the orifices assmall as possible.

It is a primary object of the present invention to provide a new andimproved apparatus for the continuous treatment of strands with a fluidmedium, in either liquid or vapor condition, which overcomes thehereinbeiore mentioned difficulties and disadvantages.

Another object of the invention is to provide a new and improvedapparatus for the continuous treatment of strands with a fluid mediumwhich is easily laced or threaded at the start of operation, or wheneverrethreading becomes necessary, while reducing the escape of fluid fromthe chamber to a minimum during operation.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparentfrom the description thereof hereinafter.

In general, the objects of the present invention are accomplished bypassing a strand to be treated continuously through a chamber while her.Preferably, the fluid medium is passed through the chamber in the samedirection as the direction of travel of the strand. The strand entersthe chamber through an entrance orifice or opening and leaves through anexit orifice or opening, said orifices being only slightly larger insize than the strand passing therethrough with the exit orifice beingmovably mounted toward and away from the entrance orifice.

Since the present invention is applicable to numerous and differenttypes of strand-treating apparatus, for simplicity the invention will bedescribed in detail as the same is employed in connection with a strandstretching device or tube, it being understood that the preferredembodiment shown in the accompanying drawing is merely intended to beillustrative and the invention is not to be limited thereby, but only inaccordance with the scope of the appended claims.

In the drawing,

Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation view oia strand stretching tubeor chamber-as itappears when ready for threading or lacingyand Figure 2is a sectional side elevation view ofthe apparatus of Figure 1 inoperative position, i. e., with a strand passing continuouslytherethrough.

Referring to both figures of the drawing, which depicts a preferredembodiment of the invention, :a strang 3 passes around agodet or wheelband an associated lap=displrcing guide 5, through a fluid mediumtreating chamber or tube 6, which :may be made of glass, porcelain,iron, steel, copper, and the like, but preferably of metal which isresistant to the particular fluid being employed therein, through theelongated tube l, which is preferrbly a capillary tube, and then aboutanother godet or wheel 8 and its associated lap-displacing guide 9. Thetube or chamber 5 may be wrapped or lagged with a suitable insulatingmaterial, such as asbestos, rock wool, cork, or'the like, as shown bythe dotted line iii. If desired, the tube may be jacketed and a heatinterchanger liquid or gas, such as hot or cold water,

steam, etc., passed therethrough. Godet a may be driven at the same,slower, or faster speed than godet 4, depending on whether shrinkage,stretching or neither is desired.

Threaded onto the strand entrance end of tube -5 Ba cap I! in the centerof which a nozzle I2 is threadedly mounted, the leading, tapered por-.

"tion 12a of which extends into the tube or chamber 6. There is a smallopening or orifice IS in the nozzle I2 which fans out'into thefunnelshaped entrance opening i3a in that part of the nozzle positionedoutside of the tube 6. Threaded onto the strand exit end of tube 6 is aretaining cap M which has an opening l5 in the center thereof.

Slidably mounted inchamber 6 is a member "or piston or piston-likemember it which has an opening I! therein in perfect alignment with andcorresponding in size to the inlet orifice 13. Opening H is in realitythe exit orifice. The capillary tube 1 has a sliding fit in the openingl5 which serves as a guide-way and centering means for the tube 1, andthreaded into the piston it so that the opening to in tube l is inperfect alignment with the opening 1! and inlet orifice l3. The openingin; is preferably slightly larger thanthe opening l! but it maybe of'the'same size if desired. The length of the tube I should be at leastequal to and preferably slightly grer ter "than the distance from theouter face-or wall Ma of cap I d to the inner end of inlet opening ororifice l3. A portion of tube I should extend beyond the face Ma toenable one'to grasp the same and also to place a vacuum line 2|!thereon. The inlet orifice l3 and the exit orifice 11 may he varied insize depending upon the size of the strand or strands being treated. Forbest operation, i. e., preventing abrasion to the strands and -reducingthe escape of fluid treating .medium to exhaust steam and condensate, ifany, is expelled the direction of flow, conduit 48 would bepositionedadjacentcap It and conduit i9 positioned from the tube throughconduit [9 connected to the bottom thereof. When using a liquid fortreating the strand, the direction of flow would preferably be reversedin order to fill the tube with the liquid. As shown, the direction offlow .of the steam isconcurrent with the direction of travel of thestrand through the tube. To reverse adjacent cap 1 l. The tube 6 may beof any desired length depending upon the contact time desired betweenthe steam or other fiuid media and the strand.

While steam has beenspecifically referred to in describing theapparatus, it is to be understood that the invention contemplates theuse of other vapors, for example, acetone or acetone-air andacetone-steam mixtures, air, formaldehyde, chlorine, and other toxic,corrosive, or obnoxious gases, etc., and various liquids, such as water,alkalies, acids, organic solvents, and solutions of solids and gases inliquids.

the inlet and exit orifices are in alignment and form one continuousopening. A portion of tube 1' still extends outwardly from tube 6. Thestrand 3 is directed around godet 4 and the lap-displacing guide 5 anddirected through the opening to into orifice i3. A vacuum line 29 isplaced over the end of tube I outside of tube 5 and the strand .3 isdrawn through orifices I3 and I! and through the opening la in tube I.The vacuum line 26 is then removed from tube I and the strand 3 directedaround the godet 8 and'lap-displacing guide 8. Prior to moving themember i6 through the chamber into abutting relation with the nozzle it,the steam or other fluid passing through the chamberpreferably is cutoff and is not allowed to pass through the chamber 6 again until thetubehas been threaded or laced and member l5 has been returned to thefixed position shown in Figure 2. However, it is to be noted that thesteam inlet conduit l8 isso positioned that the steam enters the chamberor tube behind member i6 when it is in abutment with nozzle I2.Therefore, in the embodiment shown, it is not necessary to cut oil thesteam or other fluid flowing through the chamber while threading thesame because member It acts as a barrier Y and prevents the fluid fromgetting into the space .21 around nozzle [2 and thereby prevents anypossibility:ofthestrand 3 being defiectedfrorn the course desired,namely through the inlet and exit orifices l3 and IT. Thentube l ispulled outwardly until piston i6 abuts against'theretaining cap I I, asshown in Figure 2. The pressure of the steam or other fluid medium helpsto holdmember lfi'in'the fixed position shown in Figure" 2, in abutmentwith .cap M.

Various changes in the dimensions, other than those hereinbeforementioned, may be made in the apparatus as desired. For example, tube 6may be cylindrical or rectangular, or it may be increased or decreasedin diameter, or shortened or lengthened. .All of these changes dependupon the type of treatment and the particular strand being treated. Ifdesired, the size or diameter of member it may be less than that shownso that it does not contact the inner wall of chamber t. Member l6would'then serve only as a retainin means by abutting against cap I4when tube 3 is moved to the position shown in Figure 2. However, the useof the piston-like member It as shown is preferred since it helps tocenter the tube 'i in chamber 5. The chamber 6 then acts as a guidewayfor member [5 which is in reality a centering means.

By means of the present invention, threading or lacing of strandtreating tubes or chambers is greatly facilitated without opening thechamher and without increasing the size of the strand inlet and exitorifices. In fact, the present invention enables the use of the smallestpossible inlet and exit orifices thus practically eliminating the lossof steam or other fluid media. By thus reducing the steam or fluid lossto such an appreciable extent, there results a more nearly constantpressure throughout the length of the tube which often permits loweroperating pressures. The device is simple in construction. Numerousother advantages will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

It is to be understood that the drawing and description are merelyintended to be illustrative and that changes and variations may be madewithout departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as definedin the appended claims.

I claim:

1. An apparatus for treating continuously moving strands with fluidcomprising. a fluid treating chamber having two end-Walls therein, astrandentrance orifice in one end-wall of the chamber, a member in thechamber mounted movably toward and away from the strand-entranceorifice, an opening in the member for passage of the strandtherethrough, an opening in the other end-wall of the chamber, meansslidably mounted in the said other end-wall opening and integrallyattached to the member for moving the member in the chamber, said meanshaving an opening therein for passage of the strand therethrough, meansfor continuously passing a strand through the chamber, and means forsupplying fluid to the chamber, said fluid supplying means beingpositioned so as to allow the fluid to force the member in abuttingrelationship with the secondmentioned end-wall of the chamber.

2. An apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein the chamber comprises anelongated straight tube.

3. An apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein the means for moving themember is a tube, the opening in the tube being in alignment with theopening in the member.

4. An apparatus for treating continuously moving strands with fluidcomprising a fluid treating chamber having two end-walls therein, anozzle in one end-wall of the chamber and extending into the chamber,said nozzle having an opening and away from abutting relationship withthe nozzle, said means having an opening therein for passage of thestrand therethrough, means for continuously passing a strand through thechamher, and means for supplying fluid to the chamher, said fluidsup-plying means being positioned so as to allow the fluid to force themember into abutting relationship with the second-mentioned end-wall ofthe chamber.

5. An apparatus as defined in claim 4 wherein the chamber comprises anelongated cylindrical straight tube.

6. An apparatus as defined in claim a wherein the means for moving themember is a capillary tube, the length of whichis greater than thedistance between the inner face of the nozzie and the outer surface ofthe second-mentioned end-wall, said capillary being in alignment withthe said other end-wall opening.

'7. An apparatus as defined in claim 4 wherein the member is a piston.

8. An apparatus as defined in claim 7 wherein the means for moving thepiston is a capillary tube, said capillary tube being larger than and inalignment with the opening in the piston.

9. An apparatus for treating continuously moving strands with fluidcomprising a fluid treating chamber consisting of an elongatedcylindrical straight tube having two end-walls therein, a noz zle in oneend-wall or the chamber and extending into the chamber, said nozzlehaving an opening therein for the passage of a strand therethrough. apiston in the chamber mounted rnovably to= ward and awayfrom the nozzlein sliding fit with the inner walls of the chamber, an opening in thepiston for passage of the strand therethrough, an opening in thc'otherend-wall of the chamber, capillary tube means slidably mounted in saidother end-wail opening and integrally attached to the piston for movingthe piston toward and away from abutting relationship with the nozzle,said capillary being larger than and in alignment with the opening inthe piston, means for continuously passing a strand through the chamber,and means for supplying fluid to the chamber, said fluid supplying meansbeing positioned so as to allow the fluid to force the member intoabutting relationship with the second-mentioned end-wall of the chamber.

10. An apparatus as defined in claim 9 wherein the capillary tube meansis greater in length than the distance between the inner face of thenozzle and the outer surface of the second mentioned end-wall.

PAUL D. EMERSON.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number

